Maria Sakkari defeated Alina Korneeva 6-1, 7-5 in the first round of WTA Athens. The Greek dominated the opening set with two breaks and never faced a break point, then survived a seesaw second set to close the match in straight sets.
After racing to a 5-0 lead in the first set, Sakkari broke for 3-1 and 5-1 before serving it out. The second set featured five breaks of serve: Sakkari went up 3-2, Korneeva levelled at 3-3, Sakkari broke again for 5-4 only for Korneeva to break back. Sakkari then broke decisively for 6-5 and held to seal the win.
Sakkari's first serve was a key weapon, winning 70% of points behind it. She committed no double faults against Korneeva's four, and converted five of eight break points to her opponent's two of eight.